2 onions, thinly sliced (we did not use this much, only a quarter of a large onion)

1 teaspoon soy sauce

1 1/2 cup beef broth

1. In a bowl, mix together flour, paprika and pepper.

2. Roll the beef in the flour mixture to cover.

3. Place them, along with all other ingredients, in a slow cooker.

4. Cook on high for 4-6 hours (ours was ready in 5).

Verdict: One whole garlic bulb was probably a little much as the stew had a really strong garlic taste. I was disappointed not to really taste the soy sauce. Overall, I liked it but have had better beef stews.

I am pretty sure I found this recipe in the French Metro newspaper. It also marks my first time trying out my slow cooker!

700g beef cubes

Salt and pepper to taste

1 large onion, thinly slices (we didn’t use all of a large onion, because ours was rather large. We probably used closer to a small onion)

3 carrots, sliced

4 or 5 medium potatoes (we used 4), diced

1 can tomato soup

1 cup tomato juice

1 tablespoon basil

1. Place the meat at the bottom of the slow cooker (it can’t be frozen).

2. Add the vegetables, in layers. Salt and pepper to taste.

3. Add in tomato soup, tomato juice and basil.

4. Cook on low for 6 to 7 hours. (We cooked ours 7 and the bigger potato pieces were still a little hard.)

Unfortunately, I didn’t manage a very good picture.

Verdict: I liked this. It was like a beef stew, but with a tomato base instead of a gravy base. Next time I might add more carrots and make sure the potatoes are all cut small, so they can all cook properly.